Still at school....So just a quick note...

Whew~been so busy with tests, tests and more tests..I feel like a lab rat. But I'm doing fine as far as marks go. I just got my mid-term marks and my average was 90%. Not bad for an old lady when there's so much memory work. I have thought and thought about the kind of counseling I'll be doing. I started out wanting to counsel abusive men, and I still may do that, but I'm leaning more on Christian counseling at a church. Well, it could all change again before I'm done, so I'll keep you posted on that.
Holly is doing fine, trying to finish up her high school and then off to pastor's college. Hey, maybe she'd let me be a counselor at her church. Oh boy, mayhem....I can see it now.
Other than that, there is so much not new around here right now. Except, once I get my degree, we will be moving into the city, (Toronto) to be closer to my wonderful mommy-in-law. And work will be better there as well. Sometime in the next few years we will be moving back to the Ottawa area as I miss it so much. I absolutely hate where I live now and I've been here for nearly 6 years and have never warmed up to it.
Holly has been learning to speak, read and write Hebrew. It's hilarious to hear her. She tells me that she is actually dreaming in Hebrew at this point, which is really good. It's funny when I go past her room and she has a Hebrew radio station on...Shalom, you crazy kid!! Actually, she will need it for pastor college and this will put her ahead of the others as it is usually one of the courses you take in order to study the bible.
All the animals are doing well. Lumpy is as fat as ever and the birds are still evil, but we love them. Poppy has 6 eggs on the go right now, but she's not sitting on them much. Maybe she's fed up! Oh well, who has the time for 6 babies right now? Not me, if I can help it. And poor Bunny has lost 2 or 3 teeth in the last few months or so. I think she's older than we think.
Anyway, consider yourselves up to date on my boring life. So sorry I'm posting so little lately. Maybe once I get a job, I'll be able to post all day, every day...lol.
NAI hubby is doing just fine. He's busy at work and managing just fine without me, which is great. I love that about him....I think.
By the way, I seem to have lost my Title Header and no matter what I do, I can't get it back. Any suggestions??? This has been a problem for months and it's driving me crazy. Oh, well.
By the way, I'll be posting new pics of the grandbabies in the next few days. You won't believe how they've grown. You'll find them on my photo/video blog.
Take care

Merry Christmas and Pass the Vodka...

Well, it's that time again people. Christmas cheer, family, birds 'banging', me falling...oh wait...that's just a Friday for me, I forgot.
I hope you are all readier for Christmas than I am!! Nope, not in the least bit ready...sigh. And we're getting the tree today....where did I put those decorations??? I believe they're under a my small mountain of small kitchen appliances in the storage closet. You know, the one that's so crammed full of junk you can't close the door anymore...sigh.
Holly had her surgery on Tuesday. She's doing very well, but has a mouthful of cankers that are causing her more pain than her teeth. Poor Holly! But she has found some solice in swigging vodka every once in awhile. Either it helps the pain or she just doesn't care anymore!! Merry Christmas Holly!
Well, some good news. Ashley, Rob and the grandbabies came on Monday. The kids are getting so big! and so are the grandbabies..lol. I love having them here; I just want to keep them forever..all of them. Somehow, we'll pull this mess together and make a beautiful Christmas of it because I have all the main elements for the best Christmas ever. I have my loving family here all together for the first time in a long time and that's all the Christmas I need.
So, now for 'Adventures in Toryland'. Ashley, Ariel and I go for a simple trip of grocery shopping yesterday, but it was snowing like blazes. We took our bundle buggy with us and when we came back we got stuck with the buggy in the deep snow. Ashley and I are pulling and pulling until I (of course) fell down. That was it. I could not get up no matter how we tried. I was about ready to get out my blackberry to phone Rob to come and get me, as everytime Ashley tried to help me, I would fall again and spin. We look up, and there's a man shoveling snow. Ashley asked him to help us and he came over and helped me up and even pulled our cart for us into the building. It was then I realized it was my next door neighbour! Embarrassing! Ashley couldn't stop laughing long enough to be of any help to me at all...the rotten kid. She's just like her sister...sigh.
Anyway, school is going great and keeping me busy. Homework and more homework, but I'm enjoying it.
Just in case I don't write again before Christmas, may I extend God's Richest Blessings to you all from my family to yours.
Take care

School, School And More School...

I know, it's been awhile..the title says it all. Lots of homework but my grade average is about 95%, so I'm happy with that.
I am so enjoying school, I love learning, it turns out and by the time I'm done, I will have a college diploma as an addictions counselor and community service worker, another words, a social worker. It seems so hard to believe at my age that I will get this diploma and I'm really looking forward to being a help to people. It will make my life worth something, you know?
NIA Hubby and Holly have been so supportive. They have both managed to take care of most of Christmas for me and getting the house ready.
Now for some really fun news! Ashley, Rob and my grandbabies will be down for Christmas this year, for the first time in at least 4 years. I'm so excited to see their little faces making ginger bread houses and cookies etc...So fun.
Poor Holly has to have surgery on Dec. 16, to have her wisdom teeth out...ouch. They have not been able to push through the gums because there is not enough room, so they will have to go after them. I will take the day off school because she has never had an operation before and I know she will be anxious about it.
Tomorrow I go for more laser surgery on my eyes. They have found more bleeding in my eyes and aren't sure they can save my sight, but oh well, life happens. My school is really good about letting me take Holly there to do my notes when I have my laser surgery, so she will go to school with me tomorrow. She's a good kid.
That's all the news for now. I'm not that interesting really right now because my life revolves around school, But I miss you all and a special thanks to Forsythia for hanging in with me.
God Bless you all this Christmas season! May you and yours stay close and warm.
I'll write again soon-er!
Take care

School Days...

Well, I'm back. I've been so busy with homework for this particular module at school. It was body, mind and health and it was very interesting. I really enjoyed it. There was quite a lot of work to do but i loved it. We had 2 tests, an essay and a presentation. I am really convinced that God has truly been directing my ways these days. I can actually get up in front of my class and do a presentation without any signs of a panic attack or anything. I'm getting quite comfortable up there and that's just not me.
We are starting to get some practical teaching on how to practice therapy and I find it very exciting.
In this module and the last, (psychology) my overall mark was 88%. Now before you start thinking about how brilliant I am, I should tell you about our phenomenal teacher. She has her Doctorate, so she's actually a professor. But she's very low key about that and asks us to just call her by her first name. That's actually very helpful to me as, if I had to keep being reminded of how smart she is, I could be intimidated by her. Her manner is not intimidating and she's a lot of fun. But the main thing I appreciate about her, is that, she sets us, her students, up for success. She teaches in such a way that it's really hard not to pass. The way she prepares us for tests is actually the main reason I'm getting decent marks. I really believe this and I thank God for her every day. Each module has ridiculous amounts of information that we have to absorb and at first it doesn't seem humanly possible, but she manages to get it pounded into our silly little heads and with just a little effort on the students part, it works out somehow. For example, the textbooks from which we study can be very convoluted in their definitions. Often, the definition makes no sense at all to me, but Teacher explains it so much simpler and makes it very understandable. She is also brilliant at getting you to retain what you've learned, which was something I was particularly worried about at my 'old age'.
So, yes, school is great and I'm loving it.
In other news...I take Holly to school on the days I have a test because once we write the test, we are able to leave. So, it's company for me and we usually go out for lunch after. Good bonding time for us....er..most of the time. So, yesterday, Holly came to school with me and afterwards went to Wendy's for lunch. We had a good time and went outside to sit on the curb in the parking lot while we were waiting for NAI Hubby to pick us up. He forgot we were at Wendy's and drove by us to go to the school. I started to get up from the curb when I saw him coming and Holly held out her hand to help me up. Good kid, right?? Noooo! She yanks my arm out of the socket, I go flying on my face in the parking lot, landed on my elbow and knee, did some sort of weird 'break dancing' move, (break dancing was never my strong point), my shoe goes flying across the parking lot probably nearly putting Holly's eye out. Suddenly she lets go of me and I'm spinning on my fat belly uncontrollably. When I finally stopped, I look up and she's got her phone in her hand calling Hubby to tell him where we are. She then hangs up the phone and looks down at me. 'What are you doing?' she asks innocently. Urgh, kids. I told her I was practicing my hip-hop moves. How could she have missed that entire theatrical program I put on in the parking lot? I hope no one from school was driving by!
More news of schools and fools to come.
Take care all.

What An Interesting Day!

Well, I sure had a long day today. I had an appointment with my eye specialist at the hospital. I had missed two other appointments because both times we had a snow storm and couldn't get into the city during rush hour. Anyway, in order to get there today, everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. Left in plenty of time, and took and alternate route, however, it was even slower than the busy route. I was nearly 15 minutes late and was afraid they wouldn't see me. But thankfully they did, and a good thing too. My eyes are a mess because of my diabetes. I must have had 10 different tests, including being shot up with dye to take pictures of my eyeballs. After all that, the Dr. said things were serious with my eyes, but he could probably save my sight if I have (get this!) 8 laser surgeries! What??? Not only that, he wanted to do the first one today...o.k...sounds like fun. So he sent me away for some lunch and when I came back I went right into surgery. No, of course I didn't have the luxury of being put to sleep. No bullet to bite on even...actually, I exaggerate. I asked him if it would hurt, and he said yes. Fair enough, at least he was honest. All in all, the surgery took about 20 minutes, and wasn't all that painful. I think I'll live through the next 7...whatever. My eye doesn't really hurt too much, but it did give me a headache. C'est la vie! So, now I go for surgery every Thursday for the next 7 weeks. I'll be glad when it's done.
Well, it's over Sens fans. We just couldn't remember how to play hockey. We sucked and now we are gone till next fall. Boo hoo...go Calgary! You have to be flexible as a fan, don't you think?
In other news, Poppy has an egg again. She gets way more action than I do. We'll have to see how this one turns out, if it does.
Holly got her hair cut very short yesterday. It looks very cute. She started out wanting to shave herself bald...eek! I said, 'o.k. Brittany!! But don't blame me if you end up under suicide watch at the hospital!' After she had time to examine her new 'do' she told me that she looks like a 'Doodlebop', whatever that is. I disagreed. She still looks human. Anyway, she went to the trouble of finding the Doodlebops on-line, which is some sort of kids show. Huh, she was right! But she still looks cute.
Well, that's all the news that's fit to print. I'll write again soon.
Take care All
Tory

Tory...The Rebel...

I remember 'the Mother Unit', (er,that would be my mother), saying when I was around 5 years old, 'There is no God!'. I have no recollection as to the circumstances surrounding this statement, and as far as I know, that was the first time she ever mentioned God to me. I remember, on occasion, parroting this phrase to people, having no idea what I was talking about. But, that's what 'mother unit' said, so it must be true.
Funnily enough, at 17, I found God. Actually, He wasn't lost, I was! Overnight there was a profound change in my attitude and outlook on life. When I told 'mother unit' about my experience, I will never forget the look on her face. She was absolutely horrified! You would have thought I had just told her I ate one of my younger siblings.
I would laugh to myself when I would hear her on the phone with one of her friends saying, 'I don't know where I went wrong with her, maybe it's just a rebellious stage or something. At least I hope so!' I never, ever preached to her, but she was constantly asking me questions about my faith and I would tell her, only because she asked. In a way, it seemed so personal to me at the time, I really didn't want to talk to her about it much. It was a profound experience for me, and she made it sound like a disease. But I didn't back down, or I simply couldn't back down from her questions.
After awhile, she sort of came to terms with it, when she realized that it wasn't going away. But really, she just made allowances for my 'retardedness'. lol...
A few years later, her mother was very ill with cancer. I spoke to my Grandma often, and prayed with her. She herself had found her faith through the horrendous experience of being so ill. Finally, in January, we got the call that Grandma had been hospitalized and she was not going to be around very much longer. My mother picked me up at work, and we went by car from Toronto to Montreal. It was a terrible day for driving and we came into a major snowstorm. We couldn't see a foot in front of us and it was so bad, we couldn't see to even pull over. I wasn't really worried to be honest as my 'mother unit' was an excellent driver. But I looked over at her and she was sweating bullets, clutching the wheel and leaning forward in her seat straining to try and see where she was going. The only other traffic on the road were 18 wheelers, who because of their weight, felt secure enough and experienced enough to drive at full speed. Every time one of them would go by, it would blow our car all over the road. This was the reason that it would have been unsafe to just park on the side of the highway. They would never have seen us and would have plowed right into us.
Another tuck went whizzing by us and our car spun around and landed right on top of a median at a cut-off. All of our 4 wheels were lifted off of the ground, and there we sat, sideways on the highway, teetering back and forth. The 'mother unit' freaked. A truck came roaring by, just missing our bumper and there was nothing we could do. Mother unit, in a panic told me to get out of the car, then she changed her mind and said I'd better stay in the car. She tried and tried to get 2 wheels to touch the ground to get some traction, but it didn't work. Finally, as another truck was barreling down on us, she turned to me with tears in her eyes and said, 'Tory, pray.' For some reason, I was totally calm and I smiled and said, 'O.K.' And pray I did. I closed my eyes and thanked the Lord for sending us an angel to get us out of this mess. As I was praying, It felt as if someone lifted the car up from the back end and put our two front wheels onto the road. Mother unit gunned it and we were free. Shortly after, the snow stopped. Mother unit was very quiet for the longest time. Finally, she broke her silence and said, 'Did you feel someone lift up the car?' 'Ya,' I said, 'I prayed for an angel to come and help us. They're pretty strong.' 'But I felt it, I really did!' She said. Dead silence...but I could hear her mind turning...lol. Finally after a long silence, she said to me, 'What if we don't get there on time and she dies.' I replied, in all earnestness, 'I'll see her again one day..I'm not worried.' Mother unit began to cry...'I guess that's what's bugging me, I don't think I will see her again.' We had a very long talk after that, about God and His impact on our lives. She actually listened!
Grandma died a day or two after we got there. When it came time to make the arrangement for the funeral service, the family met with my Grandma's Pastor. He asked us which songs, and scriptures we would like. The whole family just sat there, at a total loss. They didn't know any scriptures to be able to choose them. I piped up, with some scriptures, suggestions and songs. I was the youngest one there and I didn't want to impose my ideas into it, but there was a very awkward silence in the room when he asked that. I could see the relief on every one's faces that I was able to come up with something so we didn't look like complete heathens. I looked at the mother unit, and for the first time, I saw she was proud. After that, if there were any questions, Mother unit would say, 'Oh, let's ask Tory, she'll know.'
That day, my Aunt asked if I would sing at the service and I did. It was a very sad day indeed, but I felt satisfied that I had been vindicated for my faith. I'll never forget it.
In other news, Holly went for her beginners driver's licence, and flunked...teehee! She went back and rewrote it and passed. We are never going to let her live this down, and I'm sure she'll be pleased I made that announcement here! My poor wiener kid!! lol...
I just have one more thing to talk about. I finally figured out what google reader is, and now that I have it, I love it. The only thing is, there is no place for putting comments there..at least, I can't find it. Anyway, I've noticed that my comments have dwindled to nil. Is that because we all have google reader and we can't be bothered? Please people, comments are what bloggers live for...don't forget to post comments on your favorite blogs. I know it's a little more trouble, but it means so much to the blogger.
Take care
Tory

Please, Somebody Kill Me...

Do you all see that horrible countdown clock I've added to my page??? I am going to quit smoking on Feb. 3. Yes, Holly forced me to watch Oprah, and it was about quitting smoking. Bastard Kid!! I've already decided that if I don't know what to do with myself when I quit, I have several options:
1) Cry
2) Kick Holly's butt!
3) Smoke one of the animals
4) Sleep for months at a time
Wish me luck, Kids and I will say sorry in advance for anything I may write on this blog after Feb. 3. The opinions of Tory, at that time, are not necessarily those of management!
Take care
Tory

Sorry, Sorry, Sorry!!!

I'm finally back. So sorry it took me so long. I've been so busy. Holidays were blissfully non eventful. Just hung out at the Love Nest with my hunny. We didn't do much, just spent a lot of time together. laughing, bonding and singing along. O.K. maybe there was no singing, but I think that would have been nice, don't you?
Anyway, I had a birthday back in July, and I am so totally freaked out about it!!! I turned 49 years old. It didn't bother me when I turned 40 or 45, but 49?? One year away from 50!! Which Holly so kindly reminds me of every 10 minutes. Ooooh, kids!! That's O.K., Holly is anorexic, so to get her back I call her fat. Not to worry people, she's much better now.
To make matters worse, my Dr. changed the type of insulin I've been using. This stuff makes me ravenous. If you hear anything stirring in the night, it's me rifling through the fridge finding things to eat at 3 a.m. So, since starting this insulin, I have been gaining weight. And believe me, I wasn't exactly slim to start out with. My underwear have gotten so tight, my hips are numb.
It all came to a head last night when I stepped out of the shower and saw my reflection in the mirror. I have the profile of Alfred Hitchcock....don't laugh, it's true. I have a beard growing suddenly that could compare to any Mennonite. It's not that my hair is falling out and getting thin, it's just that it's being redirected to my chin. So, I've taken to plucking constantly. However, I swear that when I pull one hair out of my chin, three disappear from the top of my head. My stomach has turned into an apron and my knees have grown together!
Diet and exercise is out the question because I hate both. Exercise, for me, is to sit in the tub, pull the plug and fight the current. I see all those crazies who jog. If I'm jogging, it means someone is chasing me with a knife.
Ah well, life goes on.
Talk to you all soon, I promise.
Take Care
Tory

Hello Everyone!
I'm Holly. My mom just wanted me to come on and tell everyone that she decided to stay at the trailer for a few extra days. She says she will be home on tuesday.
Since she isn't here (and can't do anything about it!) i should take over her blog and write something....hmmm......... I can't think of anything to say.

A few weeks ago, I went to see a Darren Hayes concert. You may know him better as the led singer of the group Savage Garden (yes, he is still around!). I'm such a loser but HE TOUCHED MY HAND!! Anyways, I'll post some pix of the concert.

I guess that's all I have to say. My mom will be on next week to tell you guys what's new with her. (and will hopefully have more interesting stories!) Bye!

Can I Live in the Parking Garage???

It is only noon and already it is unbearably hot here. I hate this time of purgatory where the apartment heating is still blasting and it's 25C outside. I'm sitting in my own puddle...I'm melting..melting.. O.K., I'm over it.
My pregnant daughter has been having false labour a lot these days. Good old braxton hicks. I just heard my hubby tell his mother that Ashley is having 'Taylor Hicks!!' Had to explain to him the other day what a mucus plug was. He knows nothing about pregnancy. Too funny!
Holly has insisted that we bond by watching T.V. together. Why? She ruins my cooking shows for me. Points out how disgusting the chefs are. Things I never noticed before, she points out and then it drives me crazy! Go away, non-cooking demon-seed! Spawn of Satin...
Anyhoo, Bunny said Holly was bugging her too and could I please get Holly out of her room. She suggested the linen closet. I'm afraid it's going to come down to an intervention between Holly and myself and all of the pets. Well, except for Poppy, cause she'll just suggest that we all die and solve the problem completely.
I bought Poppy a new toy yesterday. A little mirror with a bell. She has tried to destroy it since I put it in. She has her eye on that birdie in the mirror. I was hoping this would distract her from her master plan for awhile. If you're wondering why I don't give Tequila any toys...he's afraid of them. Won't go near them. The only thing he will play with on his perch are drinking straws. He's also afraid of most greens. Runs away from them. O.K.
I just found out that Donny Osmond will be coming on tour fairly close to our area. Yippee! Don't make fun of me, I love him and always have! Last time he came, I had two tickets. Took Holly up and down Toronto looking for a fake I.D. for her because Donny was playing at a Casino. Finally found one for her for $35. She was apparently visiting us from Flint, Michigan. Made her practice her address and date of birth over and over again. Took the long bus ride to the casino, and security wasn't sure about her I.D. Crap!!! Wouldn't let her in.
Got a refund on our tickets. She said for me to go, but there was no way I was going to leave her wandering around alone outside of a casino. We went for a nice dinner and then stood outside of the stage door where I could hear Donny singing. Burst into tears, making Holly feel worse. Meanwhile, through sobs and drama, I saying 'I'm fine. Don't worry about it, honey,'....sob.
Since I left Fang, I have been telling Holly that Donny is her real father. She didn't want Fang as a father, so I obliged her. I told her Donny and I had a torrid affair and that's how she came to be. She went along with me, because, frankly, she's as nuts as I am. I announced to her the other day that her 'father' would be coming to town, and we would go to see him. She's of age now, so, not a problem anymore.
In other news, Is it just me or is the T.V. series, 24 about the same thing every year?? There's a bomb, there's the president and everyone is trying to kill Jack or CTU is arresting him. Does that not describe every season? Don't get me wrong, it's certainly well done, so well done they use the same plot every year and we buy it. So well done that, actually I don't understand it. Both hubby and Holly are crazy about this show, so I'm forced to watch it. But I can always fall back on the knowledge that there's a bomb...the president...and so on.
The other night it was the season finale. The tension was palpable. I tried not to ask too many questions because they get very emotional around here. I'll never forget asking, 'Who's he?' Everyone yelled at me at once. Sorry...They felt I should have known that was Jack! Gee, I wonder what it's going to be about next season?!
On to the next topic. Forget about the year of the dog! In my house it is the year of the fruit fly. Because of all the small animals we have, we have a continuous problem with fruit flies. Every couple of months we put all the animals into one room and spray the whole house, but they always come back. I have no idea how I can get rid of this problem, except to get rid of my babies and that's not going to happen. So, we contend with them as best we can.
Poor Lumpy is very popular with them. I'll look in on him and he'll have a few sitting on his back and head, like he's a subway or something.
Some of the fruit flies are old enough that they actually have walkers and are complaining we have no prune juice. My hubby said that one of them introduced him to her grandchildren. We call them 'Lumpy's friends'. I've actually started to name them. Henry flew into my eye the other day, said excuse me and moved on. At least he's polite! Some of them can be quite surly and in general they're mean drunks, I've noticed. It's a problem and I don't know how to fix it. I hate spraying that crap in the house as it's not good for any of us including the animals.
Sorry, I have to go now. Some of them are having a bar fight on the counter and I have to break it up before they destroy the place.

Release the Hounds..pigeons wouldn't cut it!

Life has been crazy the last couple of days. Hubby and I were to go up to our 'love nest' yesterday, but he has had a fever the last few days. Yesterday, when he woke up we noticed his leg was red and inflamed. I should have been a Dr., I knew it was his cellulitis acting up again. Sent him to the clinic who sent him to the hospital for I.V. antibiotics. He picked me up on the way and I went with him to keep him company.
OMG!!! I hate hospitals. It's the boredom I can't deal with, the waiting.
And we all know how hot hospitals are, so I dressed appropriately in capri's and a T shirt. It was quite cool outside but I knew I'd be in the horribly hot hospital. I nearly froze to death!! This hospital had the air conditioning on full blast. I swear I saw a dog sled team go through emergency! Luckily I was able to keep myself amused by making snow balls and hitting the sick and the lame while they weren't looking! Nothing quite says welcome to Canada like a snow ball in the back of your turbin.
Anyway, hubby gave me $20 and I hit the change machine. Then I hit the vending machines. Had about 10 drinks then spent 20 minutes looking for the bathroom. That wasted some time. Tried to read a magazine, but of course, I forgot my glasses. Could hardly see the magazine, never mind the print.
Finally, they called hubby in and we were told to go into a room where there was already a woman in one of the beds. Hubby got into the second bed. The woman was eating lunch and it smelled really terrible.
More waiting. I wanted to scream. Can't stand being bored. Finally, I just couldn't sit there anymore. Took the instruments off of the wall and starting looking into my hubby's eye's and ears. Yup, they were still there, in my professional opinion. After tiring of that, I began to rifle through all of the drawers and cupboards in the room. I remember at one point looking over at the woman in the other bed and she was sitting there looking aghast that I would do such a thing. 'C'mon live a little, Lady!' I thought. So, I continued my rifling. Oooh, rape kits! I looked at hubby and thought better of it. He's a sport, but let's not push it. Then I looked at the lady...maybe not.
Finally, the Dr. came. He was the youngest Dr. I'd ever seen. As a matter of fact, he came in the room on a skateboard and kept his stethescope in his book bag. They hooked him up to the I.V. It was all said and done after half an hour and we were free.
I called Holly to let her know what was going on. 'I have something for you.' I said. 'Ooh, is it food?' She sucks as an anorexic! 'No,' I said, 'better. Hospital/Michael Jackson masks for our trip to see your sister!' She was thrilled, which is kind of wierd. She has a fear of getting other people's germs. She said that when she's on the train, if anyone looks at her funny with her mask on, she'll tell them she's very ill and make them feel bad for thinking she's just strange, even though she is. This should be a fun trip.
Anyway, hubby goes in for another I.V. today and that should set him right.
Have a good weekend everyone.